St. Thomas Tidings: July 18, 2024
There is no commemoration on today’s calendar. The collect for the day is the collect from this past Sunday: O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Directory Update: Thank you for your help in correcting our directory information. Look for a new edition coming soon.
Episcopal Night at Dodger Stadium: Our annual Dodgers game is Friday, September 6 at 7:00pm. Sue Williams has graciously volunteered to coordinate our order this year. You need to sign up in the narthex with your name, email address, and number of tickets, and give Sue your money BY THE END OF TODAY so that we can get the order to the diocese. Tickets are $35 and will be distributed to your email address when they are received by the diocese. You will need to show the ticket on your phone at the stadium.
Veterans’ Outreach: Our St. Thomas Veterans Outreach mission continues. We will be filling “bags” on Friday, July 26 at 11:00am and delivering the goods that afternoon between 1:00-2:30. We will be taking lunch to our veterans again. Updated informational forms for what the veterans would like to receive will be in the narthex; please use those updated forms when you shop for supplies. Thanks for your support!
Choir Vacation: Our faithful choir is taking its usual break in July and August. We’ll still have music during our 10:15 services, but all the voices will come from the pews. Hearty thanks go to all the members of our small but mighty choir who spend ten months of the year leading our worship with their gifts.
Vacation Info: Mother Sharon and Mike will be on vacation July 26-August 16. Father Michael will take care of pastoral needs during their vacation, and the Reverends Holly Cardone and Gary Commins will supply on Sunday mornings. Please keep Mother Sharon and Mike in your prayers for a safe and restful vacation.
Communion Update: We are continuing to try out our new model of receiving communion, where those who wish to receive by intinction receive first, and then those who wish to drink from the chalice. We are continuing to fine-tune the process, and also see how we might use this model at the altar rail. Please let Mother Sharon or Sue Williams know of any comments or ideas on how to continue to make communion flow smoothly.
Livestream Help Wanted: As noted in the Canterbury Tales, we need one or two people who are willing to step up and learn the livestreaming system so that we can remain online. We don’t want to deprive our livestreaming siblings of the services they rely on! If you are interested, please speak with John or Mother Sharon.
Service Reminder: All our services stay on our Facebook page so you can view them whenever it’s convenient for you. It’s always better to view a service later in the day than not at all! The link to the page for all our services is here: https://www.facebook.com/Saint-Thomas-of-Canterbury-Episcopal-Church-of-Long-Beach-CA-124554214274325
Share Our Services: Please feel free to share our Morning Prayer and Sunday services. The more people we reach, the better we do at evangelism. People are hungry for what we have to offer, and I encourage you to do your part to share our services with your friends and neighbors. Send them the link when you email them, invite them to join you on Facebook or in person… whatever way works best for you to share what we have to offer.
Episcopal News Updates: The email updates from the diocese are a great way to stay informed about what’s happening all over our six-county diocese. If you want to receive the Episcopal News, visit https://diocesela.org/episcopal-news/contact/ and enter your email address in the box provided.
In Case of Emergency: Notify your priests! With our combined ministry program comes additional coverage for pastoral emergencies. In the event of a hospital stay, illness, death in the family, or other pastoral emergency, please call Mother Sharon on her cell phone (562-833-3393) any day except Friday, her Sabbath day. Father Michael Fincher covers emergencies in both communities on Friday, just as Mother Sharon covers emergencies in both parishes on Monday, Father Michael’s Sabbath. Father Michael’s cell phone is 909-373-6478.